Episode 7
An evening on a day as the monthly evaluation drew near.
The Practical Music Department teachers gathered on the athletic field wiped sweat from their foreheads.
"Phew, who on earth started this damn Open Stage in the first place?"
One teacher carrying performance equipment grumbled as he looked around.
"That was probably..."
A teacher tried to answer but closed his mouth upon seeing someone walking toward them.
"It was probably me. The one who started that damn Open Stage."
Sim Yujin, the most senior teacher at Seun Arts High School, approached with a slight upturn at the corner of her lips.
"Ah... Teacher Sim."
"It started when I suggested it about ten years ago because the existing first-round auditions had too many problems."
"Haha... It hasn't been as long as I thought."
"Yes, isn't it nice? If we just work hard beforehand, we can finish everything in one day."
Sim Yujin looked around.
The outdoor performance booths being installed on the athletic field.
By tomorrow, students were scheduled to perform on top of them.
Literally an open competition.
It was the type of competition that Sim Yujin had devised in the past.
After that, the March monthly evaluation, which had the most applicants, had proceeded as this Open Stage.
"If you'd like to judge in the concert hall for a whole week like before... I'll suggest it again."
"Ah, no. This is perfect. Haha, actually, we're not even the ones doing all the booth installation."
The male teacher withdrew his opinion with an awkward smile.
She was the student supervisor. More than anything, she had an aura that made one unable to talk back, so no one wanted to oppose her needlessly.
"Yes, then please bear with it a little longer."
"You work hard too, Teacher Sim."
The short conversation came to a close.
"Since she's moving equipment like that herself, there's nothing to say."
Another teacher approached the male teacher and spoke to him.
Pointing out that Sim Yujin was also moving necessary items herself.
"And honestly, most of the booth installation is done by the company."
The male teacher silently nodded in an atmosphere that had already passed.
"So you were here."
"Ah, Teacher Sim."
Sim Yujin, who had been walking ahead, greeted a teacher pleasantly.
"Teacher Kim Jeongsik. You're working hard without resting, aren't you?"
She wasn't trying to nag. Kim Jeongsik was the teacher she had worked with the longest at school.
It was a joke stemming from her fondness for him.
"By the way, it starts again tomorrow. The first gateway to the Concert."
"That's right."
"You sound less excited than I thought? You're the one who predicts the winner like a fortune teller every time."
"...Isn't it because the students did well? I just voted and watched."
Though he was not one to laugh easily, a chuckle escaped him.
"So tell me who you're voting for beforehand this time too. For reference."
Kim Jeongsik looked at Sim Yujin with a strange expression.
Sim Yujin, who particularly enjoyed the students' growth through competitions.
Even for someone like her, when she acted this way, there was always the same reason.
"...Is there a student you're looking forward to?"
It was a sign that she was anxious about the student she had her eye on possibly falling behind.
"As expected, you're no bear."
"Pardon?"
"The students call Teacher Jeongsik a bear, but from what I see, you're quite perceptive."
Sim Yujin recalled a student in her mind.
"There is a student I look forward to. Someone who hasn't been doing music for long, yet feels the most like a musician."
"A first-year?"
"No. Funnily enough, a third-year."
Kim Jeongsik thought for a moment and answered.
"Well, if that's true, I'll find out soon enough."
Sim Yujin nodded silently.
*Others call it a cruel survival competition, but...*
What kind of even better sides would Park Jahun show, having already displayed such growth in just six months, after learning through the experience of the Concert?
Her anticipation grew in her heart without her realizing it.
* * *
The practice room found with Seonji.
"You came prepared?"
"Of course."
At my question, Seonji nodded and placed her hands on the piano.
It was for the final check of the upcoming stage.
—!
The accompaniment flowed smoothly.
Over the performance that continued without any stuttering sections, I laid down my rap.
"...It seems like we're all set?"
When the song ended, Seonji looked at me with a somewhat displeased expression.
Probably because the completion was higher than expected.
"Yeah, this song should be good enough as is."
We had prepared five songs in total for the competition.
I recalled that list.
*'The Time Is Go' and 'Whale' are almost at the level of the original songs.*
The rest were the same.
"Hmm, but I'm a bit worried about something, Jahun."
"About what?"
"It's not anything else, but since we don't have a session... what if we get buried by the other teams?"
"Are you worried the sound will be empty?"
"That's right."
"Don't worry too much. There are plenty of students who like an acoustic feel."
I said it lightly, but it was actually something worth thinking about.
Though my personal calculations were already finished.
"And I chose the repertoire taking all of that into account."
"You have everything planned out... You're like the teachers."
Seonji pondered for a moment and asked me.
"...Can we make it to the Concert?"
"Hmm..."
I checked the set list we would perform in my head.
*Not bad.*
A set list refers to the order of songs in a performance.
I did the song selection, but Seonji handled the flow of the songs.
Surely because she was a composition major, she knew how to arrange the overall order.
*Though it's a bit weak.*
The problem was that simply being okay wasn't enough.
"Honestly, it's not bad. The problem is that this isn't a regular performance but a competition..."
It was called an Open Stage, but in truth, it was neither a performance nor a concert.
The Concert, one of the biggest festivals at Seun Arts High School.
It was a sort of survival audition for the right to advance to it.
*I'll need to think about it more.*
I pondered and continued.
"Let's go with this for now. We'll change it then if the situation allows."
"Okay. Then since practice is over, let's rest a bit..."
"Hmm... I listened earlier and the timing on the second song was off. Let's do it once more."
"...You really sounded like a teacher just now."
Seonji put her hands on the piano with a slightly tearful expression.
"Okay, let's just focus on the parts that are slightly off."
Of course, "slightly" was by my standards.
And so our practice only ended after going through all five songs three more times.
* * *
Time passed, and the day of the Open Stage arrived.
The students' ears perked toward the classroom speakers.
[Students participating in the monthly Open Stage and students who wish to watch, please gather on the athletic field.]
The time had come to show everything they had prepared over the past month.
"Did you practice a lot?"
"...I practiced a lot. But I don't know if I did well."
"Hmm... Same as me."
Among the school competitions, the Open Stage was watched by the entire student body, so once the crowd gathered, it quickly grew noisy.
"There are so many people."
"Right. And these are all performers."
Seonji nodded with surprised eyes.
If they all gathered, it would probably be enough to fill a third of the athletic field.
*If you add all the students who came to watch...*
Then the field would truly be full.
"The teachers set up all the instruments, right? Like last year."
Seonji pointed at the various instruments and equipment set up on the athletic field.
*The setup was done by the company, and students who got demerit points probably helped move the equipment...*
Either way, it was remarkable dedication.
Creating a day like this by combining Friday afternoon club time and Creative Experience Activities—hereafter, Creative Experience time—was impressive as well.
The very idea of it was impressive.
—Can everyone hear me! This is the March Monthly Evaluation. I'm Teacher Chae Seola, in charge of the Open Stage!
Once the students had mostly gathered, a simple briefing began.
—Judging will be conducted by the Practical Music Department teachers and students from other departments moving around and standing at the stages they like!
It wasn't anything special, but the students swallowed nervously as if tense.
—Please don't forget that only today's passers can participate in the next monthly evaluation!
It was a cruel remark, but the students weren't shaken.
Because everyone knew how fierce school competitions were.
Instead, they waited in ready positions like track athletes.
—Now then, grab your booths! Please begin your performances!
It had begun.
The students ran to secure positions advantageous to them.
Except our team.
"This spot should be fine for us."
"Yeah."
A booth prepared with just a piano and a microphone.
We approached the center of the athletic field where it was installed.
*Other teams with more members can't aim for this spot, and the sound is good. At this level, it's as if someone installed it intentionally.*
It was probably a coincidence, but the spot was better than expected.
"That booth already has an audience."
As I was setting up the mic, Seonji pointed somewhere.
"It's Park Yunseok's team booth."
It wasn't an unexpected situation.
There were students who had fans in other departments, after all.
Moreover, Park Yunseok was famous even among them.
He was a student who had won both the Open Stage he participated in last year and the subsequent competitions, and had even advanced to the Concert.
*I don't know why he didn't debut back then.*
The Concert, where various music industry figures gathered in the audience.
It was a sort of gateway for Seun Arts High School students.
Unless they were like Park Yunseok, who had refused agency connections himself.
*We'll end up being friends and rivals later, but he's someone you never really know.*
You could see that just by looking at the students here.
Weren't they all striving desperately to advance to the next monthly evaluation?
Except me, of course.
Because I didn't have much ambition for the Concert.
*It'd be nice to advance, but even if I don't, there's a lot to gain from classes.*
My time at school was finite.
I planned to adjust according to the situation to use it more efficiently.
For that reason, I wasn't solely focused on winning.
*Huh?*
Up until then—
until the Crack window appeared.
[Cubase - Crack No. 2 Occurring]
Details - From playback time 18:30:56 to 18:80:20. Affected by Crack No. 2.
Occurring Crack - Wrong Encounter.
Solution - Advance to the Concert.
Success - Contact with Nnet-affiliated writer Yeon Jimin.
Failure - Inevitable contact with Finally Entertainment CEO Baek Cheolho.
*Why is this appearing now?*
Why did it have to appear at a time like this to shake me?
I read the contents full of resentment.
*What's with the contents, and who is Yeon Jimin?*
But the name in the failure column was one I clearly knew.
*Baek Cheolho... As expected, he's someone fitting for a penalty.*
The company that ruined me in my previous life was Finally, and that bastard was its CEO.
*Hoo, let's calm down for now.*
Just hearing the name made anger surge. I took a deep breath.
If I wavered here, I was the only one who'd lose.
Because he was someone I didn't want to get involved with in any way.
*So that means I have to advance to the next stage first.*
I pondered and called Seonji.
"Seonji, there's something I need to tell you quickly."
"Huh? What?"
"The song we decided to start with..."
I pointed to one among the sheet music.
"Let's go with this one."
Seonji looked at me with an expression asking for the reason.
"I said we might modify the set list depending on the situation, remember?"
"Y-yeah?"
"That time is now."
A backup set list I had prepared just in case.
It was good I had prepared it.
I pointed at the other booths with conviction.
Teams that already had audiences before starting.
"It's a way to avoid getting buried by them and to gather an audience."
"...Got it."
Fortunately, Seonji understood and nodded, spreading out the sheet music.
*The song selection was already finished, and arranging wasn't possible in this situation.*
But that didn't mean I was going to back down.
Rather, my head was filled only with thoughts of winning.
"Our booth..."
I grabbed the mic and spoke to the surroundings.
"We'll be performing 'The Time Is Go' by Deart."
The moment the music to advance to the next round was selected.
Regressor on the Beat